Chapter 3
Together again.
“I missed you so much,” Urgg blubbered, squeezing Seth.
The human squeaked. Whether it was from being grabbed too suddenly or pain from the tight hold, I wasn’t sure.
Seth didn’t love to be touched by many people.
He’d never told me the exact reason behind his aversion, but I suspected people in his past hadn’t always been kind to him.
Or it could merely be that Urgg was hurting him.
They were exceedingly strong—all barbarus were.
Barbarus used to be enemies of the drakcol.
We’d been warring on and off through most of our space-faring history, but a treaty had been struck when the Barusian government wanted to join the Coalition over a hundred cycles ago.
Still, some animosity remained between our species.
When Captain Talvax had sought the Crystal, it had revealed her soulmate as Urgg.
At first, she’d been furious and had denied the call for years, making herself sick in the process, but now the two of them were deeply in love and well-matched, which was hardly surprising—the Crystal was never wrong.
I patted Urgg’s arm to have them release Seth, and they did. He took a huge gasp of air. Perhaps Urgg had restricted his access to air.
I curled my tail around Seth’s wrist, drawing him closer for inspection.
Humans were exceedingly fragile. His pink-white skin was without trace of hard plates, scales, or natural armor of any kind.
Seth was all softness and roundness, from his large stomach and backside to his brown hair to his plump cheeks.
His round pupils that sat in his deep brown eyes couldn’t see as well as ours did, and his blunt white teeth couldn’t do significant damage, and he even had an unscaled pink tongue.
Still, I quite liked the look of him. I wouldn’t want a human to care for as my own, though.
“I missed you too, Urgg.” Seth pulled me into an abrupt hug before releasing me. “I missed you too, Wyn.”
“As did I.” It hadn’t been that long, and yet it felt like a lifetime. I wasn’t used to being alone anymore.
“We should eat,” Urgg said.
“No graugg or any other drinks,” I said. The maroon Barusian drink was a favorite of Seth and Urgg’s. I had nothing against it, but the alcohol was strong.
“Afraid another incident will happen?” Urgg asked.
“No,” I lied, tail thrashing.
“Liar.”
“I merely think we don’t always need to drink.”
“On Barus we always drink, no matter the time of day. Besides, I don’t know why you dislike having puked on Monqilcolnen as much as you do. It’s the sign of a strong bond,” Urgg commented.
We’d had this argument before, many times in fact.
Barusians saw vomiting and shedding blood as bonding experiences—drakcol did not.
Monqilcolnen wasn’t my friend, and I very much doubted he liked me in the slightest, though…
There had been that odd moment on the grappling mat with his golden eyes burning into me.
My tail thrashed at the thought of his weight on me. I swallowed. I had to avoid him; that was the thing to do. But how was I to accomplish that when I would have to see him weekly for my blaster training?
Seth interrupted our good-natured fight. “Come on. I’ve missed you two and the Admiral Ven. Let’s go.”
“Where’s Bobbinvoxlyn?” I asked, looking for Seth’s small kit.
“Kal has him,” Seth commented, heading toward the lift, and I wanted to beam in pride.
Since Bobbinvoxlyn’s birth, Seth struggled to let his son out of his sight, but he was getting better.
No doubt his therapist had assisted with that, or perhaps Vince had.
Vince was Seth’s childhood friend from Earth, who’d been abducted by the xoi.
Prince Dontilvynsan had saved him and many others, and now Vince and Dontilvynsan were Crystal-bound mates.
We headed to the promenade, which took up three floors and was filled with shops of all kinds.
I smiled as we entered, seeing familiar faces among those who walked around.
Most people aboard were drakcol, but there were also the humans we were returning to Earth, a handful of barbarus, some vveki in their floor length veils, blocking them from light, and many other people, all species I was familiar with.
The Admiral Ven had been my first long term assignment.
I’d been assigned here for only a year before I’d transferred to Tamkolvanloknol, working on Edith’s independence project, but it was nice to be back.
I loved and hated it here. Hopefully, since so much time had passed, the story of me vomiting on Monqilcolnen wouldn’t be resurrected.
Seth pressed into my side, and I forced myself to pay attention to my direct surroundings.
The crowd wasn’t too numerous, even though everyone had boarded.
This ship could hold ten thousand, but there were only close to three thousand right now because very few people wanted to journey to the outskirts of civilized space.
Besides, this was also going to be a long trip, nearly two years. Not many, unless this was their job, could come for the fun of it.
But the crowd was oppressive enough to bother Seth, who had an extreme aversion to large groups of people. I wound my tail around his wrist to keep him secure against my side and searched for any threat. Seeker soul I might be, but I could keep him safe.
We were on the bottom floor of the promenade, giving me an excellent view of the glass barriers keeping people on the higher decks from falling, though most drakcol wouldn’t mind.
But it was against regulations to fly on any station or ship.
Colorful vines draped over the glass, alive with blooms. Similar vines crept over the ceiling, and the typical blue moss covered the floor.
Plants filled almost every available space, providing oxygen to the ship as well as lending an air of tranquility.
Drakcol thrived on nature. We needed sunlight to survive; it was integral to our health and wellbeing. Each light in the ship provided the same vitamins sunlight did—it was the only way we could survive in space long term. We also needed plants. They provided a peace that kept us calm.
My eyes ran over the shops with lighted signs written in Standard, colorful awnings, tables and stools in front of the restaurants, and the odd wares for sale.
I saw a couple of pet vendors. One was selling Garbilian beetles.
Many people liked to keep them as pets, because they were smart, loyal, and would rid your home or ship of smaller pests.
Beside the beetle vendor was a cat priest.
We took the cultural laws of Earth seriously.
Cats were house gods and goddesses, worshiped by humans, and we honored the same traditions.
One had to sign a document stating that they wouldn’t move a sleeping cat from where they perched.
The person also had to prove they could afford to care for the delicate creatures.
Being able to have one of these human gods was a huge honor.
I wanted one, so badly, but I couldn’t afford one.
They weren’t cheap pets to acquire or keep.
If I asked, Seth would purchase me one, but I didn’t want him to.
It would be taking advantage of his generosity.
No, I would keep saving until I could afford one.
But thankfully, I was allowed to play with the cats in the shrine.
They did require a considerable amount of attention to be content, so shrines encouraged people to come inside.
We continued to walk until we reached the Foblen food stand.
I was beyond happy to see Mistress Kel’yeena.
She had been my favorite vendor when I was stationed here.
I loved her noodles. Every single one of her soups was delicious.
Not only that, I considered her a friend.
I might have been on board for a bit, but I’d avoided the promenade because I’d feared running into Monqilcolnen, which was a shame because I’d been unable to reconnect with her previously.
Urgg and Seth took a table. I already knew what they would both order.
Urgg didn’t care, as they liked to try new things.
I just ordered them something random, knowing they wouldn’t care.
Seth would want what he always used to get, and what he still ordered from the Foblen noodle vendor in the capital we frequented.
Seth wasn’t one for change. Once he found something he enjoyed, he usually never tried anything new.
I approached the back of the small shop, which was covered with an intricate tapestry, shielding the kitchen from customers.
A furry appendage pushed back the cloth, and I was greeted by an arachnid face.
Mistress Kel’yeena had twelve beady black eyes, slit nostrils, and a gaping mouth with four clacking mandibles.
Her upper body was clothed in swathes of heavily embroidered black silk, which highlighted her soft frame.
She had four long arms, covered in silver-white fur.
Her rounded abdomen was draped in black silk and glass beads hung over the side, tinkling with every movement.
Her four legs were bent and added to the arachnid appearance.
“Wyn,” she said, mandibles clacking. “It’s so good to see you, young one.”
“You as well.”
“Are you stationed here once again?”
“Only temporarily. I’m going to be here for this mission, then return to Tamkolvanloknol.”
“Oh,” she said, sounding rather sad in her raspy voice, and her arms fell. “I shall miss your breath once more.”
That was quite a compliment from a foblix.
Breathing was considered sacred and lovely because it vibrated the webs filling their nests.
Foblix were weavers and creators of the highest skill, and I adored their food and wares.
If I could’ve afforded it, I would’ve purchased more than one blanket, rug, or tapestry from Mistress Kel’yeena, although foblix didn’t sell what they made.
Their skills were only to be used to give gifts for their loved ones to adorn their nests.
So any of their woven goods for sale were secondhand and exceedingly expensive.
“I suppose you would like to eat?” she asked, rubbing two of her front legs together.
“I would,” I confirmed.
“Lucky for you, I made a batch of noodles only yesterday. They are fresh and ready.”
I told her my orders, and she disappeared behind the tapestry.
Foblix were private to an extreme. No one besides family was allowed inside their nests.
While her shop wasn’t her nest, it was private from prying eyes.
Besides, I believed some of her customers wouldn’t like to know her noodles were made from the webs she secreted.
The webs were rolled until they formed noodles, then were dried, and chopped to the right length.
Foblix ate these soups for every meal.
When she returned, she gave me a tray with three soups. One had rich brown broth and thick chunks of meat; this one was Seth’s. Me and Urgg both had a red broth, which was too spicy for most species, with long green vegetables and fried meat on top.
Seth gave me a warm smile, and Urgg grunted their thanks before taking a huge gulp, sputtering when the spice hit their tongue. “By the gorgg’s low hanging rocks,” they said, “that is burning hot, but it does taste rather lovely.”
I took a long drink, the spice pleasantly burning my throat. “Perfect.”
“Is that a challenge?” Urgg leaned closer, baring their teeth, but I wasn’t intimidated.
I raised my eyebrow.
Urgg grunted, taking another huge gulp, and we both ate our noodles, not trying to gasp from the heat. All the while, Seth laughed.
I glanced between my friends and smiled, ducking my head. We were all back together again, as we should be.